MELBOURNE, Fla. (Volleyball) – Florida Tech will try to put an end to its current losing-skid on Friday when it welcomes fellow Sunshine State Conference member Eckerd for a rare home contest at Palm Bay Magnet High School's gymnasium.
The Panthers (11-13, 2-10 SSC) have lost three straight heading into Friday, most recently a home defeat to one of the better teams in the SSC this season, Saint Leo. FIT was able to snag the first set from the Lions (25-22), but SLU fired back, winning the next three to leave Melbourne with a 3-1 victory.
Friday's matchup will be the second meeting between FIT and the Tritons (13-11, 4-7 SSC) this season. EC won the earlier contest 3-1 on Oct. 3 in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Jenna Schaffer had a strong performance for the Panthers, tallying a team-high 12 kills, while Alea Hamm notched nine in the match. Schaffer and Hamm also combined for 11 of FIT's 18 block assists, recording five and six blocks, respectively. Finishing with a double-double was Ashtin Truesdale, who collected 33 assists and 11 digs in the loss.
To improve its chances for a better result in the second contest against EC, FIT will need to keep track of Katie Arnette, JaQuayla Baker and Tjasa Kotnik who combined for 45 of the Tritons' 61 kills in the first meeting. Emily Schadow initiated the EC onslaught with her match-high 53 assists and five digs in the win over the Panthers.
The start time for FIT's rematch with Eckerd is set for 7 p.m. ET. PBMHS is located just off Babcock Street at 101 Pirate Lane, Melbourne, Florida 32901. Fans that are unable to attend can access live stats at FloridaTechSports.com/live.
